Reader’s Links for August 9, 2020

Each day at just after midnight Eastern, a post like this one is created for contributors and readers of this site to upload news links and video links on the issues that concern this site. Most notably, Islam and its effects on Classical Civilization, and various forms of leftism from Soviet era communism, to postmodernism and all the flavours of galloping statism and totalitarianism such as Nazism and Fascism which are increasingly snuffing out the classical liberalism which created our near, miraculous civilization the West has been building since the time of Socrates.

This document was written around the time this site was created, for those who wish to understand what this site is about. And while our understanding of the world and events has grown since then, the basic ideas remain sound and true to the purpose.

So please post all links, thoughts and ideas that you feel will benefit the readers of this site to the comments under this post each day. And thank you all for your contributions.

This is the new Samizdat. We must use it while we can.

About Eeyore

Canadian artist and counter-jihad and freedom of speech activist as well as devout Schrödinger's catholic

89 Replies to “Reader’s Links for August 9, 2020”

  1. Hey guys, I just read that Germany will pay 10 Million Euros to support a country that is not really friendly to us and that would never help us if we were in need, one day.
    Namely Lebanon.
    This common practice of German politicians needs to end.

    No Matter What Happens – Germans Have to Pay

    • A Greek, a Spaniard, a Portuguese and a french walks into a bar. Who pays? Germany

  2. Now will you look at this,

    MASSIVE PROTEST IN JERUSALEM outside of Netanyahu’s residence.
    YESTERDAY

    • What’s with the logo–black and white hands shaking? What does this mean? Racializing the Wu-flu? That’s the stuff of left-wing radicalism. Are these protestors leftist radicals? Why protest a conservative PM who’s trying to protect his country? I don’t know Israeli politics, but I do know that Bibi, PT and Orban are on the same page, and all have been accused of every fascist crime under the sun by–you guessed it–lying fascist commie msm bastards. I will take this protest with a bolder of salt (I can’t even read the signs) while wondering how much Herr Soros contributed to its organization through his corrosive NGO’s.

      • The Israeli left wants to be more left than the Left. You coukd say, too, the Right is always more right than the Right. The Middle East births extremes.

      • “What’s with the logo–black and white hands shaking?”

        The Brotherhood of Man.

        It’s from the logo created for the movie 1984, released October 1984, to represent the English Socialist Party, “IngSoc”.
        https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ingsoc

        The issues in the 1970s were women being equally swappable with men, then a decade later blacks equally swappable with whites…. and today trangenders equally swappable.

        So the merging of gender symbols would have been the most appropriate representation of today’s New Citizens of swappable Diversities and equal representations.

        The tyranny of the utopia is always visibly shown; being the carrot with which to beat you.

  3. BREXIT?
    Are you sure?
    It doesn’t look like that anything has really changed, especially when it comes to what lay at the Heart of the Brexit Voters.
    Illegal Immigration.

    Meet Serco: Corporation Behind Illegal Migration (into the UK)

  4. One thing we cannot yet see clearly, but can know for absolute certainty, is that the lines in our societies are being drawn very clearly between those who will fight for freedom, and those who will comply with Neo-Marxist globalism.

    Here is financial analysis from a religious perspective:

    https://youtu.be/r0FTzCoBGj8

    “…gold is a hedge against government…”

    • The new EU budget is designed as an opportunistic power grab by EU globalists. The transfer of wealth from north to the ever-corrupt south will continue. Increased leverage of the carrot and stick strategy against Poland and Hungary will intensify. Politicization of money for compliance under the guise of the fictitious climate emergency will increase.

      Clearly, the new paradigm to come, following our victory over globalist ghouls, will necessarily include draconian punishment for corruption and fiat diktats by both the elected and not elected apparatchiks, which are, simply put, indicative of a corrupt conscience.

      https://mises.org/wire/covid-crisis-has-helped-make-blueprint-european-superstate

  5. China bubonic plague spreads: Beijing orders second lockdown after new horror death (express, Aug 9, 2020)
    https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1320540/china-bubonic-plague-news-lockdown-village-bayannur-inner-mongolia-rats

    “PANIC has swept across China’s Inner Mongolia province after a second bubonic plague lockdown was enforced, two days after the first, as whole villages are sealed off.

    Sadly, a man died in the region’s city of Bayannur from multiple organ failure after contracting the deadly disease that caused the Black Death. Authorities tracked the man’s movements back to his village and sealed it off. This is the second village to be placed in quarantine within the past few weeks…”

    • regularly occurs in the US desert regions without much fanfare. PRC messing with our minds.

      • It’s actually ANTI-ChiCom sources that push this junk. Epoch News and misc. Indian sources blow up bits & pieces of everything. Set to dramatic music plus CGI, they attract a audience that seeks to draw certain conclusions.

        Indians commenting on it treat it like satisying fables, alternate Bollywood. Entertaining affirmation of justice on earth triumphant.

    • The New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) reports the death of a man in his 20s from Rio Arriba County of septicemic plague, the first human plague death in New Mexico in 2020, and the second human plague case overall. The Rio Arriba County man died after being hospitalized…

      “Plague activity in New Mexico is usually highest during the summer months, so it is especially important now to take precautions to avoid rodents and their fleas, which can expose you to plague,” said Department of Health…

      https://losalamosreporter.com/2020/08/07/rio-arriba-county-man-dies-from-human-plague/
      …..
      “In recent decades, an average of seven human plague cases have been reported each year in the United States (range: 1-17 cases per year). Most cases of _Yersinia pestis_ infections in the USA occur in the area of the “Four Corners” states — Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah — although California and, to a lesser extent, Oregon also may have cases.
      https://www.cdc.gov/plague/maps/index.html
      ……
      In Mongolia traditional medical remedies include consumption of RAW innards of a certain type of RAT. Authorities have not been totally successful in eliminating the practice.

  6. Police services increasingly are being used to enforce unlawful activity. This example, along with numerous examples by Rebel Media in Canada, prove that police are increasingly siding with state-sanctioned cancel culture. Since this suspicion of the police goes counter to normally police-supportive conservatives, it presents an odd dynamic whereby we must “…support but verify…” the stance of any given police effort, to borrow a term from a famous conservative.

    https://summit.news/2020/08/07/british-man-arrested-for-filming-migrants-being-loaded-onto-coaches-in-dover/

    • “According to LGBT Asylum support foundation chairman Sandro Kortekaas: “The attacker, also from Nigeria, actually tried to throw the water over another lesbian woman and her 18-month-old son.””

      I have no idea on the motives between people in the same house, and that the LGBT Asylum support foundation can say anything.

      But I do know of another child without a father and its bastard ramifications as easy prey to Marxists with fairness jangling in front of them.

  7. Swedish Court Overturns Child Rape Conviction of Afghan Migrant (breitbart, Aug 9, 2020)
    https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2020/08/09/swedish-court-overturns-child-rape-conviction-afghan-migrant/

    “A Swedish appeals court has overturned an Afghan migrant’s conviction for child rape, ruling that he did not know the girl’s real age despite inputting it when ordering her a bus ticket.

    The Afghan man, who is in his 20s, was convicted of raping a 13-year-old girl earlier this year and sentenced to one-and-a-half years in prison, a fine, and deportation.

    A ruling by the Göta Court of Appeal has completely overturned the sentence and ordered the migrant be set free. The court said that it had not been proven that he did not know the actual age of the girl, Nyheter Idag reports.

    According to court records, the Afghan met the child on social media and arranged to meet her in person, buying her a bus ticket. The minor later came to the man’s residence and the pair had sex, but she later reported the Afghan for rape.

    The migrant claimed he did not know the girl’s age, but she testified in court that she had repeatedly told the migrant how old she was.

    When ordering the bus ticket, the migrant put down her real age but later claimed he did so to get a discount — and that it was merely a coincidence he wrote 13.

    The appeals court acquitted the migrant as the girl was shown to have previously lied about her age to a different male. She was therefore deemed not a reliable or credible witness.

    There have been numerous cases of Afghan migrants in Sweden involved in rape attacks in the last several years. In one case in 2018, a pair of 18-year-old migrants raped a 40-year-old woman who had previously campaigned against the deportation of Afghan migrants from Sweden.”

  8. Another good one from SARGON

    Portland Is Still An Absolute Warzone

    Social justice activists have turned Portland into a warzone for nearly two straight months. After attacking the federal courthouse, the federal agents were withdrawn only to see riots flare up again and head to the suburbs where people were terrorised with chants of “black lives matter!
    We know where you live!
    We’re going to burn down your building!”

    • Enemy number one
      Anti-China sentiments run at an all-time high as MOTN respondents advocate a strong reply to the neighbour’s adventurism

      On April 1 this year, the diplomatic lines between New Delhi and Beijing were clogged with messages of peace and friendship. Exactly 70 years ago, India had done what seemed unthinkable for a non-socialist bloc country at the time, it recognised the government of the Communist Party of China which had only the previous year overthrown the Chinese Nationalist Party.…

      If it had not been for the coronavirus pandemic, which spilled out of Wuhan and infected the world, leading to a nationwide lockdown in India, there would have been a series of events to celebrate the anniversary.…

      A majority, 59 per cent, believe we should go to war with China, while 34 per cent say we should not. Seventy-two per cent believe India can actually win against China with only 19 per cent believing we can’t or that ‘it will end in a stalemate’.

      War, however, limited in scope or scale, is clearly not in anyone’s interest. The fact that it is even being considered as an option by the public shows the level of anger Indians have towards China and the extent of Beijing’s strategic miscalculation. The government is currently in the process of recalibrating its China policy.…

      https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/nation/story/20200817-enemy-number-one-1708698-2020-08-08

  9. President Trump addresses possible election meddling from Iran, China

    In the wake of a newly released report, which outlined foreign threats to the upcoming elections, President Trump has promised to protect the integrity of our ballots against outside actors.

    The president’s reassurance came in response to a press release from William Evanina, who serves as the director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Centre. According to the document, intelligence agencies have determined China, Russia and Iran are likely carrying out efforts to disrupt November’s presidential election.

    The NCSC director claimed that Iran and China are both actively seeking to block a second Trump presidency, while Russia is mostly directing its efforts to “denigrate former Vice President Joe Biden.”

    President Trump has rejected allegations of Russia’s involvement.

    https://www.oann.com/president-trump-addresses-possible-election-meddling-from-iran-china/

  10. British Man Arrested For Filming Migrants Being Loaded Onto Coaches in Dover

    Asylum seekers being accommodated in hotels at taxpayer expense while Brits ordered to quarantine without pay.

    A British YouTuber was arrested after he tried to live stream footage of boat migrants being loaded onto coaches in Dover before they are taken to be accommodated in hotels at taxpayer expense.

    A citizen reporter who goes by the name Active Patriot was recording the scene from a public car park when he was aggressively approached by police.

    “I’m showing the world what is going on mate,” says the reporter, to which the officer responds, ” I think the world knows.”

    “Do they really? They don’t know what extent, though do they?” Active Patriot responds.

    At first the officer claims he is arresting the man for trespassing but then suddenly changes the reason to “breaching the peace.”

    After the man complains that his arm hurts even though he is not resisting arrest, the officer responds, “Give me your arm, or I’ll put you on the ground.”

    Steve Laws, another citizen reporter who has been documenting the migrant arrivals, told Politicalite, “I saw 74 illegals being toed into poet by the border force from 8am to 11am.”

    “They were so busy they didn’t get the time to unload one boatload before another arrived,” he added. “My sources told me it as over 100 after I had left. I saw 3 coaches parked waiting since 8am. It almost seems like it was pre planned.”

    French navy vessels are escorting migrant boats into British waters, where they are then handed over to British border authorities who provide the illegal aliens a de facto taxi service and free residency while they prepare asylum claims. Migrants pay criminal people smugglers thousands of pounds to reach Europe, dispelling the idea that they are destitute.

    “More than double the number of migrants have landed in the first eight months of 2020 (nearly 3,950) than the whole of 2019 (1,850). Migration Watch UK has warned that more than 7,500 could land by Christmas,” reports Breitbart.

    The alarming migrant crisis on the south coast of England has finally started to receive attention following months of former Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage drawing attention to it.

    more :

    https://summit.news/2020/08/07/british-man-arrested-for-filming-migrants-being-loaded-onto-coaches-in-dover/

  11. The Reverse-Colonization of France

    Lyon, the third largest city in France, July 20, 3 a.m. A middle-class neighborhood. A young woman walks her dog on a quiet street. A car arrives at high speed and crushes her dog. The driver stops, backs up, runs over the young woman and crushes her too. He goes forward again, at full speed, and drags her dead body half a mile. People awakened by the noise write down the license number of the car. The police officers who come to the scene are horrified. The young woman’s body was dismembered. A leg was found on one side of the street; the rest of her body was shredded. One arm was close to the body of her dog. The other was still holding onto the dog’s leash. Her name was Axelle Dorier. She was a nurse, only 23.

    The French Department of Justice asked the police not to release the name of the killer. An anonymous policeman released it anyway on a social network site. The killer’s name is Youssef T. He was driving under the influence, without a license. The prosecutor charged him with “reckless murder”. He is in jail awaiting trial. He risks a maximum sentence of ten years. Residents of Lyon wanted to organize a peaceful march to pay tribute to the young nurse. They asked the government to get tough on crime. The young woman’s parents objected: they said they have “have no hatred” for the killer.

    https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/16327/france-colonization

  12. CBC – Commission rules in favour of 2 Muslim students who wanted prayer at private school

    Calgary’s Webber Academy was fined $26,000 in 2015, Court of Appeal ordered new hearing

    The Alberta Human Rights Commission tribunal has again ruled in favour of two Muslim students who sought prayer space at a non-denominational private school in Calgary.

    The tribunal had previously found in 2015 that Webber Academy in southwest Calgary unlawfully discriminated against the students, fining the school $26,000.

    The school appealed that decision, though it was upheld by a judge.

    In 2018, however, the Court of Appeal of Alberta ruled that the original decision contained a number of errors, including a mistake in evaluating the level of accommodation being asked of Webber Academy.

    The new tribunal also ruled in favour of the two students, Sarmad Amir and Naman Siddiqui, who had previously told the tribunal that praying is mandatory in their Sunni religion.

    “I had this intense sense of shame and humiliation, despite that I was just exercising my right as a Canadian citizen, as a human being, to practise my faith,” Siddiqui testified before the human rights tribunal.

    New appeal

    School president Neil Webber said Webber Academy planned on immediately appealing the decision to the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench, adding that the school’s lawyer believes that the new decision also contains errors of law.

    “We feel that we should have the right, as a private school, to have youngsters here of many different faiths and backgrounds together, free of religious practices,” he said.

    “Parents have choices in terms of sending their kids to schools that have a denominational belief, so I don’t see any difference for Webber Academy to be able to have a school where their kids are in an environment that’s free of religious practices.”

    Webber said that he believes that if the complainants win the case, it would set a precedent.

    “I think it sets a [situation] where schools right across the country will have to provide prayer space for youngsters coming into their school. It’s not just an impact on Webber Academy, it’s going to have implications across the country,” he said.

    https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/alberta-human-rights-private-school-webber-academy-wins-court-1.5678573?cmp=rss

    • We need some Christian sect to right away demand the exact same accommodation at another school and compare the rulings. My prediction is that the Alberta HRC will refuse to accept that complaint.

  13. Yusuf Qaradawi, the Muslim Brotherhood hood:

    “I expect that Islam will conquer Europe without resorting to the sword or fighting. It will do so by means of DAWAH and ideology. Europe is miserable with materialism, with the philosophy of PROMISCUITY, and with IMMORAL considerations that rule the world – – considerations of self-interest and self-indulgence. It is high time Europe woke up and found a way out from this. Europe will find no life saver or life boat other than Islam. Islam will save Europe from raging materialism from which it suffers”.

    Rotherham, England – The Jay Report
    1,400 mainly white girls between the ages of 11 and 14 ( some nine) were groomed, raped by multiple perpetrators, abducted, trafficked to other cities in England, by primarily Pakistani-Kashmiri Muslim men.
    It is also a fact that civic officials, town councillors and Members of Parliament were aware of this “ IMMORAL PROMISCUITY “ abuse for years and punished those who spoke out.

    • Muslim Brotherhood hoods:
      “Against them make ready your strength to the utmost of your power, including steeds of war, to strike terror into the hearts of the enemies, of Allah and your enemies, and other besides, whom ye may not know, but whom Allah doth know. Whatever ye shall spend in the cause of Allah, shall be repaid unto you, and ye shall not be treated UNJUSTLY”.

      After years of reports in Europe, it is a fact that hundreds of thousands of very young children have been treated UNJUSTLY by the Muslim monsters. This is not multiculturalism, it is a grotesque catastrophe. A total disgrace.

      • Canada, USA, the UK, France, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Ireland, Italy, Spain and many other countries have already taken a submissive stand to the Muslim invaders. Islamophobia, YES.

  14. Jeffrey Sachs Tells Vatican Conference: Trump’s Re-election Would Make US “Absolutely Dangerous”

    American economist and population control advocate Jeffrey Sachs launches a scathing attack on the Trump administration, saying it is a bullying threat to multilateralism.

    Sachs, who has a record of supporting abortion and contraception as a means of population control, was the keynote speaker at the conference on “New Forms of Solidarity” at the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences in the Vatican Gardens, Feb. 5, 2020.

    ==========================================
    […]American economist, liberal, academic, public policy analyst and former director of The Earth Institute at Columbia University,

    […]As of 2017, he serves as special adviser to the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General António Guterres on the Sustainable Development Goals

    […]Sachs works closely with the Islamic Development Bank

    […]He developed a friendship with international celebrities Bono and Angelina Jolie, who traveled to Africa with Sachs to witness the progress of the Millennium Villages.

    […]In September 2008, Vanity Fair ranked Sachs 98th on its list of 100 members of the New Establishment

    https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffrey_Sachs

    ===========================================================

    • Isaiah 59
      None calleth for justice, nor any pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.…

      The way of peace they know not; and there is no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.

  15. CBC – Thousands rally in downtown Montreal to protest Quebec mask rules

    Broad spectrum of motivations and ideologies present; few wore masks

    Thousands of demonstrators marched through downtown Montreal Saturday to protest against the Quebec government’s mandatory mask regulations.

    The protesters — the vast majority of whom did not wear masks — carried signs and wore t-shirts indicating a variety of motivations and ideologies in opposition to face coverings.

    Some demanded freedom, some were critical of the Coalition Avenir Québec government, Premier François Legault or public health director Dr. Horacio Arruda, and others espoused various theories about COVID-19 and U.S. politics.

    “I find it illogical,” said Nathalie Warren, who travelled from Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que. for the protest.

    “Say we go into a restaurant,” she said. “We walk in wearing a mask, because, what, COVID is there? Then we sit down and we can take the masks off because, what, the COVID is gone?”

    Under the government’s regulations, masks are mandatory in restaurants when clients are moving around because it is harder to maintain a physical distance from others in those instances, provincial health authorities have said. When a client is seated, they may remove their mask as long as they are at a two-metre distance from others.

    “We want our liberty. We want the right to say yes to a vaccine. We want the right to decide. It’s our life, it’s our bodies, it’s up to us,” said Warren.

    “I’m not OK with children going to school wearing masks, and physical distancing,” said Irène Sarmiento. “It makes no sense. The children aren’t to blame. The population is being abused.”

    So far, the Quebec government has not made masks mandatory for students heading back to school.

    There were frequent spontaneous chants of “liberté” as the march wound from the main gates of McGill University on Sherbrooke Street to the CBC/Radio-Canada building on René-Lévesque Boulevard. Montreal police surveyed the event from motorcycles and bicycles.

    At previous anti-mask protests in the province, demonstrators argued that mandatory mask rules are not fair and that the threat of COVID-19 is not as serious as is being reported.

    On Saturday, some people made a show of embracing each other or exchanging double-cheek kisses. During speeches at the end, there were loud cheers for suggestions the mask law had no scientific basis and was instead an effort to control the population.

    The science on masks and COVID-19, however, is now quite clear. Since the start of the pandemic, scientists have learned more about asymptomatic carriers and how the virus could spread through airborne particles.

    Public health experts note that you should wear a cloth face covering not to protect yourself, but to protect those physically close to you by reducing the chance some of your respiratory droplets come into contact with them.

    A recent study, which looked at research carried out in 16 countries on six continents, concluded that “wearing face masks protects people (both health-care workers and the general public) against infection by these coronaviruses, and that eye protection could confer additional benefit.”

    In the past, the Quebec government has said that people are allowed to protest. On July 27, responding to protests the previous weekend, Deputy Premier Geneviève Guilbault said there would be “consequences” if there continued to be incidents where people “transgress the rules of public health.”

    “It has nothing to do with taking away anyone’s right to protest or express themselves,” Guilbault said. “It’s obvious that anybody can protest. But nobody has the right to put anyone else’s health in danger.”

    https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/anti-mask-march-montreal-aug-8-1.5679598

    CBC –

  16. Even though it may, at first, seem a tad off-topic for this blog, this video is actually really important to understand how totalitarian systems work. It supports the statement made earlier on this blog (it escapes me by whom, so, please forgive me not making an attribution) that Communism was never about equality but about elites having control over the citizens.

    Some laws are broken by the elite – and the ;law-breaking is blatant: in order to remind the plebs that they CAN break the laws and get away with it. Think Saudi Royals throwing ostentatious parties with alcohol and getting away with it, or US Democrats frequently, blatantly and demonstrably lying to Congress with no consequences.

    In an environment where laws are openly flaunted, all laws are adhered to less stringently, and many minor transgressions will be ‘overlooked’…until the elites find you troublesome. Then, the full power of the State will be thrown at you in order to crush you…

    Heck, you don’t even need to break the law: Stalin said “show me the man and I will find you the crime”. Think General Flynn and Donald Trump.

    It is in this spirit that I offer you the following video on prostitution in China:

  17. CNN – Bill Gates: Wouldn’t have predicted US would do so poorly handling pandemic

  18. Antifa Preparing Violent Attacks on Police and Political Opponents, Say German Authorities (breitbart, Aug 9, 2020)
    https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2020/08/09/german-antifa-preparing-violent-attacks-police-political-opponents/

    “German security authorities have claimed that members of the far-left Antifa movement are preparing attacks on police officers and political opponents, including potential assassinations.

    The Antifa movement in Germany and its 50 supporting groups across the country are becoming increasingly more violent, according to a report from the Federal Criminal Police Office and the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution seen by Focus magazine. They are also believed to be plotting targetted attacks.

    Authorities are also concerned over allegations that some German Antifa members have travelled to northern Syria to undertake combat training with the left-wing Kurdish militia, the YPG, Focus reports.

    Breitbart London has reported on Antifa links to the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) in the past in Germany. In 2018, Antifa extremists admitted to firebombing a Turkish mosque in Kassel linked to the far-right Turkish Grey Wolves, an enemy of the PKK.

    Earlier this year, Hamburg constitutional Judge Cornelia Ganten-Lange was linked to both Antifa and the PKK, having given lectures at the Antifa “Rote Flora” squat on representing PKK terror group members.

    In June in Austria, members of the Grey Wolves clashed with both Antifa and members of the PKK in Vienna in the heavily migrant-populated Favoriten district.

    “These conflicts are imported from Turkey,” Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said.

    “If you need street fights, you should do it in Turkey, but there is no place for it in Austria,” Mr Kurz added.

    According to the Berlin Constitutional Protection Agency, Antifa has been behind dozens of attacks in the German capital from paint attacks on buildings to arson attacks. They have primarily targetted right-wing politicians and journalists.

    Last year, Antifa released an alleged “assassination guide” on the Indymedia web platform, which has often been used by militants to claim responsibility for various attacks, including the attempted killing of Alternative for Germany (AfD) MP Frank Magnitz.”

  19. Over 130 Iraqi Migrants Return Home on Voluntary Greek Flight (breitbart, Aug 9, 2020)
    https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2020/08/09/over-130-iraqi-migrants-return-home-voluntary-greek-flight/

    “A total of 134 Iraqi migrants have returned to their home country this week, with some accepting €2,000 (£1,800/$2,400) as part of a Greek government programme.

    Forty of the Iraqi migrants aboard the flight were the first to take advantage of the Voluntary Return & Reintegration Programme (AVRR). The programme was initially rolled out in March, but was delayed due to the outbreak of the Wuhan coronavirus.

    The migrants, 38 of them children, boarded the chartered flight from Athens on Thursday, according to a report from Greek newspaper Kathimerini.

    Those who took part in the new voluntary return programme are among the 5,000 or so who are eligible for the extra funding, with the qualifications being those who arrived on various Greek islands by the end of last year…”

  20. Niger terror attack: Six European tourists killed in horror assault in giraffe park (express, Aug 9, 2020)
    https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1320644/Niger-terror-attack-french-tourists-koure-giraffe-reserce-niamey

    “SIX European tourists and their tour guide are among eight people who have been killed in a suspected militant attack in Niger.

    The attack happened in the Koure Giraffe Reserve, an hour’s drive from the city of Niamey in the south east of the country. The governor of the region said the six tourists who had been slain in the savage gun attack were from France. Their tour guide and driver, both Nigeriens, were also killed.

    A source on the ground said armed men descended on the tourist attraction on motorcycles before launching their brutal assault.

    They suggested the gunmen had been lying in wait for the group and had ambushed them.

    They said: “Most of the victims were shot dead and a woman who managed to escape was caught and slaughtered.

    “On the spot, we found a magazine emptied of its cartridges.”

    “We do not do not know the identity of the attackers but they came on motorcycles through the bush and waited for the arrival of the tourists.”

    The governor of the Tillaberi region, where Koure is located, confirmed the tragic news.

    Governor Tidjani Ibrahim Katiella said: “There are eight dead – two Nigeriens including guide and a driver, the other six are French.”

    He added: “We are managing the situation. We will give more information afterwards.”

    Mr Katiella did not give further details on the circumstances of the attack.

    France’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it was working to verify the reports.

    On the Ministry’s website, advice for French citizens says: “The terrorist threat weighing on Niger, in particular outside the capital and near the borders, is high.

    “Terrorist movements present in the Sahel as well as in Nigeria and in the lake zone (Boko Haram) are likely to conduct operations in Niger “.

    The group was gunned down at around 11.30am local time, according to a source.

    The reserve is a famed tourist attraction and hailed as a well-preserved space where tourists can see giraffes roam in their natural habitat.

    Niger is home to the last remaining population of the West Africa giraffe, also known as the Niger giraffe.

    The subspecies of the giraffe is distinguished by its light-coloured spots.

    Koure is popular with foreign tourists looking for an authentic safari experience in West Africa where they can get up close to the dwindling species.

    One traveller who visited the reserve said it offers “one of the last chances to meet such great animals in their natural environment”.”

  21. In the Name of Allah: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei Launches Twitter Account in Hindi (sputniknews, Aug 9, 2020)
    https://sputniknews.com/india/202008091080111815-in-the-name-of-allah-irans-supreme-leader-ayatollah-ali-khamenei-launches-twitter-account-in-hindi/

    “After the Delhi riots, which resulted in the death of several Hindus and Muslims in February this year, Iran’s Supreme Leader had made strong remarks against India. He said that the government should take action against extremist Hindus to prevent India’s isolation from the world of Islam.

    Months after Ayatollah Ali Khmenei accused India of massacring Muslims, the Shiite religious leader launched an account in Hindi, in the name of Allah.

    Khamenei’s first tweets were dedicated to Allah and Islam, indicating that he may be making an effort to connect with the Muslim community in India.

    His first tweet reads: “In the name of Allah, who is very kind and compassionate”. In his second tweet, he shares about the heartfelt bond of Shiites with Ghadir, a sermon delivered by the Islamic prophet Muhammad at the Pond of Khumm.

    “Although the Shias’ heartfelt bond with the event of #Ghadir is a strong, significant bond, Ghadir in its true spirit does not belong only to the Shias. It belongs to the entire world of #Islam, because it is an event arising from the true spirit and essence of Islam,” the tweet says.

    ?There is no particular census on Muslim sects in India, but as per Pew Research Centre, Shia population in India is between 10 to 13 percent of total Muslim population which will translate into 20,000,000 – 30,000,000 people. India has the third largest Shia population after Iran and Pakistan and the country has more Shias than Iraq.

    Khamenei had condemned the killings of Muslims in the February 2020 Delhi riots, wherein 52 people died, over 400 sustained injuries, many went missing after the communal clashes between Hindus and Muslims over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) on 24 and 25 February.

    The Iranian supreme leader said the violence in Delhi was isolating India from the world of Islam.

    “The hearts of Muslims all over the world are grieving over the massacre of Muslims in India. The government of India should confront extremist Hindus and their parties and stop the massacre of Muslims in order to prevent India’s isolation from the world of Islam,” Khamenei tweeted.

    India had lodged a protest over Khamenei and Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif’s comments.”

  22. Iran Urges IAEA to Clarify Saudi Arabia’s ‘Covert’ Nuclear Program
    https://www.tasnimnews.com/en/news/2020/08/09/2323744/iran-urges-iaea-to-clarify-saudi-arabia-s-covert-nuclear-program

    “Iran’s permanent representative to international organizations in Vienna, Kazem Gharibabadi, called on the IAEA to clarify Saudi Arabia’s “covert” nuclear activities.
    “Despite the fact that Saudi Arabia is a member of the Non-Proliferation Treaty and has a comprehensive bilateral safeguard agreement with the agency (IAEA), it has unfortunately refused to abide by its commitments to the agency’s inspections despite repetitive calls,” Gharibabadi said on Saturday.

    He further called on the International Atomic Energy Agency to carry out investigations and submit a full report on the status of nuclear activities in the Arabian Peninsula country.

    Gharibabadi raised alarm about Riyadh’s nuclear ambitions, and said the international community will not accept Saudi “deviation” from a peaceful nuclear program and will confront it.

    The comments came after American intelligence agencies reportedly said they had spotted an undeclared nuclear site near Saudi Arabia’s capital city of Riyadh, scrutinizing attempts by the kingdom to process uranium and move toward the development of atomic bombs…”

  23. GCC Seeks UN Extension of Iran Arms Embargo
    https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2438721/gcc-seeks-un-extension-iran-arms-embargo

    “The six-member Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has asked the United Nations to extend an international arms embargo on Iran, a move pushed strongly by the United States.

    The secretariat of the GCC, made up of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, said in a statement on Sunday that Iran’s continued interference in neighboring countries made an extension necessary.

    The arms embargo on Iran is currently set to end on Oct. 18 under Tehran’s 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, which Washington quit in 2018.

    In mid-2017, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt severed political, trade and transport ties with Qatar over accusations it had been supporting terrorism and cozying up to Iran. Qatar denies the accusations.

    “It is inappropriate to lift restrictions on the supply of weapons from and to Iran until Iran gives up its destabilizing activities in the region and stops supplying terrorist and sectarian organizations with weapons,” a statement from GCC Secretary General Nayef Falah Mubarak al-Hajraf said.

    If the United States is unsuccessful in extending the embargo, it has threatened to trigger a return of all UN sanctions on Iran under a process agreed in the 2015 deal.

    The US-drafted resolution needs at least nine votes in favor to force Russia and China to use their vetoes, which Moscow and Beijing have signaled they will do.”

  24. Turkey Defies International Warnings, Continues Violating Arms Embargo on Libya
    https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2438516/turkey-defies-international-warnings-continues-violating-arms-embargo-libya

    “Turkey continues to violate the arms embargo on Libya by sending arms and mercenaries to support Fayez al-Sarraj’s Government of National Accord despite international warnings.

    According to Italy’s ItaMilRadar website, which specializes in tracking military flights over the Mediterranean, a Turkish Air Force Lockheed C-130B left al-Watiya Air Base for Turkey on Saturday.

    The air force departed from Libya on Friday returning to Turkey, the website noted.

    Meanwhile, reports have stated that the new shipment included four drones and advanced medium and light weapons, including M4 rifles.

    In news titled “the airlift between Turkey and western Libya continues,” the website pointed out that “in recent weeks the flights have almost always been directed to this air base instead of to Tripoli or Misrata as happened during the first days of the Turkish airlift.”

    Meanwhile, Turkish reports have revealed that Turkey had repaired and developed al-Watiya military base in western Libya, a month after its destruction in strikes by unidentified warplanes…”

  25. Turkish soldier killed in Northern Iraq
    https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20200809-turkish-soldier-killed-in-northern-iraq-2/

    “A Turkish soldier was killed in a clash with terrorists in a cross-border anti-terror operation Saturday in northern Iraq, according to the Turkish National Defense Ministry, Anadolu reports.

    The ministry said three soldiers were injured during Operation Claw-Tiger and one died at a hospital from wounds sustained.

    Five terrorists were “neutralized” during the operation, while their weapons were destroyed, the ministry said.

    Turkish authorities use “neutralized” to imply terrorists in question surrendered or were killed or captured.

    The ministry conveyed condolences to the Turkish nation for the death of the soldier.

    Turkey’s operations Claw-Tiger and Claw-Eagle were launched in June to ensure the safety of Turks and borders by neutralizing the threat of the PKK, and other terrorist groups, who often use northern Iraq to plan cross-border attacks.”

  26. White House Memo Directs Pentagon to Build New Icebreaker Fleet

    A recent White House memo directs the Pentagon and other executive departments to provide a roadmap by early August for creating a security fleet of icebreaker ships, Fox News reported Monday.

    The move to acquire icebreaker ships signals Washington’s recognition of the Arctic and Antarctic regions’ increasing geopolitical significance, as well as a willingness to stand up to China and Russia.

    The memo comes at a time when the United States has minimal strategic capabilities in the polar regions—there is not a single U.S. port in the Arctic capable of housing icebreaking ships. This shortcoming is addressed by the memo, which orders a search for at least two “optimal” U.S.-based port locations and two international port locations.

    Military authorities say the need to bolster U.S. operations in the polar regions is immediate.

    “We really don’t have the ability to project the presence we need to project in both the Arctic and the Antarctic,” Vice Admiral Scott Buschman, the Coast Guard’s deputy commandant for operations, told Fox News.

    https://freebeacon.com/national-security/u-s-plans-to-build-new-arctic-icebreaker-fleet/

  27. Chinese Consulate in New York Destroys Many Documents | China | U.S. | Epoch News

  28. Back The Blue And #WalkAway Rallies ERUPT Across The US, Silent Majority Waking Up

  29. Sky News – Is climate change fuelling terrorism?

    Alistair Bunkall visits the Sahel region of Africa to look at how climate change is fuelling extremism and helping militant groups.

    + comments on the YT page